Truth and Lies at Starbase 375
by Frank Toadfish
Summary: Miles and Julian take a break from their duties at the Starbase. Set at the beginning of Season 6. Bashir/O'Brien implied.


Julian stared into the vastness of grey that surrounded him. Lying on his back on the grey mattress, looking up at an identical grey ceiling, the doctor shuddered at the bleakness of it all, and tried to keep his eyes from looking at the walls and the carpet, which seemed to ooze the same drab tone. His genetic enhancements heightened his perception of most things, but it was only by being alone in such a monotonously coloured room, in the quiet, did Julian begin to take notice of his surroundings so intricately. It gave him a headache.

The doctor began to think, which was something that he hadn't had much time to do recently. He thought about how much he hated the quarters he was living in at the Starbase, but he hated the reason why he was there even more. _God damn the Dominion_, he thought bitterly to himself. It was their fault he and the other Starfleet officers had been forced to vacate the station. The place that become his home was now in the hands of what Julian could only perceive as monsters, and here he was, filing endless reports for strangers whilst the Jem'Hadar were making life hell for the others the crew had left behind at Deep Space Nine. Knowing the efficiency of the intrusive creatures, Julian suspected they were probably going through his personal possessions, too. His mind brought an image of Kukalaka, being ripped to pieces by the brutish hands of the Dominion soldiers, and he felt a wave of revulsion rise up inside him.

The door communicator bleeped, and momentarily removed the image of Julian's teddy bear from his mind.

"Come in," he replied calmly. The doors opened, and the Chief stepped into the room. He looked down at his friend, and smiled sympathetically.

"Long day for you too, was it?" Miles asked, and sat down on a chair that made up most of the room's furniture.

"Just reports, mainly," Julian replied, cheering up a little in the presence of company. "What about you? You look a little tired."

O'Brien pulled a face. "You bet I am. Nine hours of repairing the Defiant, and then another three hours of lecturing a bunch of Starfleet superiors on how their crews need to upgrade their systems on their own starships. I'm bloody exhausted."

"Mm," the doctor confirmed, and yawned. He gazed up at the ceiling. Miles looked at him.

"May I?" he gestured to the bed. Julian smiled, and made room. The Chief joined him.

"Your quarters are a bit naff," he remarked. "I'm glad I stayed on the Defiant, really. It's a bit... grey, isn't it?"

"The perfect colour for the perfect atmosphere," Julian sighed. "Present company excluded, of course," he grinned wanly. "It makes the ideal setting to sit here and mope about how frustrating this whole war is."

"It makes DS9 look like paradise, huh?" O'Brien replied. "Y'know, it actually makes me long to see Cardassian architecture again. That might have been grey too, but at least it had coloured carpets, and a little bit of style." He paused. "Tell me I didn't just say that."

The doctor patted him on the shoulder, and turned to face him. "I expect you're just homesick," he smiled. "And tired. You have never been known to be totally honest when you're tired, Miles Edward O'Brien."

"Oh yeah?" the engineer inquired. "And how would you know that?"

"I don't," Julian admitted. "I just thought I'd say it so we could do a little test."

"A test?" O'Brien frowned. "What kind of test?"

"A truth test," the doctor replied. "Am I annoying?"

"What?" Miles asked.

"Am I annoying?" he repeated. "Am I, Chief?"

"Yes," the Chief muttered.

"Oh," Julian said. "I was hoping you would say no."

"Then I'd be lying, wouldn't I?" Miles chuckled. "Next question."

"Do you think Morn needs to get out more?"

"That doesn't even need to be answered," O'Brien smiled.

"Do you think Dax sometimes makes stuff up just for the hell of it?" Julian asked.

"That's Dax, alright," Miles answered. "Come on, give me a tougher one."

"Do you think Worf smells like lilac?"

"Not a chance!" the engineer laughed.

"Do you think Quark waters down the synthale?"

"All of the bloody time!"

"Do you love me? Even just a little bit?"

Miles looked at him. "...No."

"Liar," Julian grinned, and the room no longer looked so grey.


End file.
